Typically, transaction cards are made of a single layer of plastic. These plastic cards include a variety of design elements that provide the cards with a particular appearance, and also identify the entity or entities issuing the cards. Account information, such as the cardholder's name and account number, are added on at least the front surface of the card, for example, by embossing, engraving, or other printing. Many transaction cards, such as typical credit, debit, or stored value cards, include a magnetic strip or tape that is located on the back surface of the card. Some transaction cards may have a Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) chip or a computer chip included in addition to the magnetic strip. Certain card types have only an RFID chip and/or a computer chip, for example a ‘smart card.’ The back side of the transaction card has a signature panel to which the cardholder affixes their signature upon receipt of the card. The cardholder affixes their signature for security purposes so that during a transaction a merchant is able to verify the identity of the cardholder to prevent fraud. The signature panel is typically a plastic strip adhered to or embedded in the card. The cardholder affixes their signature through the use of a writing implement, such as a pen.
These plastic cards can contain three-dimensional designs or images typically formed on metallic foils or polymer films, such as a hologram. These images are used for security purposes to prove the genuineness of the card.
Transaction cards are also known to be composed of metal or contain metal in addition to plastic. For example, U.S. Pat. Nos. 6,764,014, 7,494,057, 7,530,491, and 7,588,184, as well as U.S. Patent Application Publication Number 2009/0230195, to the American Express Corporation, disclose metallic based transaction cards and methods of making the same. The disclosure of these patents and publication is hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety. These cards contain metal in various combinations and layers. The cards are laser engraved and/or etched and require the user to sign the card in a provided space as described above.
The aforementioned transaction cards, which include credit cards, debit cards, and stored value card, as well as other types of cards, such as data cards, have variant manufactured with multiple layers. These multi-layer cards include such materials as metal, foil, plastics, rubber, laminates, and adhesives. The cards are structured with the various layers to have certain characteristics, such as color, reflectivity, durability, and flexibility. U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,648,189, 4,479,995, 4,647,714, 6,491,782, 6,025,283, 6,644,551, 6,924,026 provide examples of such cards. The disclosure these references is incorporated herein in their entirety.
Layers, such as metallic layers, are used as to contain security features in these cards. For example, metallic layers are use for their spectral characteristics or to include holograms, as shown, for example, in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,747,620, 4,865,857, 5,383,687, 6,382,677, 7,063,924, 7,503,503, U.S. Patent Publication No. 2008/0245865. The disclosure these references is incorporated herein in their entirety.
The aforementioned card types suffer from various deficiencies. For example, the signature affixed to the card by the cardholder becomes worn over time, even progressing to the point of unreadability due to the wear. Additionally, these cards lack a means to convey to the cardholder information associated with the transaction card, such as the balance status, and to remind the cardholder that the cardholder possesses the transaction card. In order to find out the remaining balance on a card, such as a stored value card for example, a cardholder has to have the card scanned at a point of sale device at a merchant.